I have created the following unit plan for reading Number the Stars. I created the complete unit plan in Google Docs and have embedded it below. The unit plan includes a description and rationale of the unit, goals, objectives, lesson activities, extension activities, and assessment. The unit plan is adapted from a unit plan created by Sandra Schwader and Mary Skoglund, which I have also attached a link to below. Also below, I have included the descriptions of all the Web 2.0 tools used in the unit. The last three Web 2.0 tools (ePals, Edublogs, and Fodey.com) are highlighted because they are optional tools for a more in-depth approach to the unit.
How this tool changes learning in a way that isn't possible without technology
Students will create a timeline of key events that occurred during the Holocaust. The students will identify these key events during lectures and by conducting research online. The students will then add events from the book to the timeline. This will allow students to understand the events of the book in the scheme of the Holocaust. Furthermore, the juxtaposition of the two timelines will help students understand and explain the reasoning for the actions of the characters and the events in the book.
xtimeline (www.xtimeline.com)
The embedded form of the timeline is showing an error. Just in case it continues to show an error, I have also inserted an image of the timeline.
xtimeline provides a number of advantages over timelines done with traditional paper and pencil. One advantage xtimeline provides is that it automatically formats the timeline. This means there is no need to have concerns about spacing or organization, which can save time and improve neatness. Second, details can be attached to each date to provide key information, but can be hidden so the timeline does not get cluttered. A third, major advantage that xtimeline provides is that it allows attachments of multimedia. Users can attach pictures, video, and/or audio to various dates that provide important information in a format that is easy to learn and remember.
Students will read Number the Stars in class to gain a deeper understanding of the Holocaust and to gain a greater appreciation for the Jewish culture. After the reading for each day, students will write their thoughts in a journal. Each day, the students will be provided with a prompt and assigned to a group. Depending on the prompt, students will have the opportunity to reflect on the readings and record their thoughts or write thoughts from the perspective of various characters. After the students record their responses in their journals, they will be able to share their journals with the members of their group. Each member of the group can then respond to the journal entries and create discussions to generate better understanding of the book.
Penmia (www.penmia.com)
The primary advantage Penmia provides over paper and pencil is that journal entries on Penmia can be shared with others to create a social environment. Moreover, unlike paper and pencil, students can use Penmia to start discussions and explore topics further through discussion. Another advantage of Penmia is that students can attach pictures to posts to enhance the posts. Finally, Penmia allows students to place entries in an unlimited number of tabs, making for better organization than having to search physical pages or notebooks for a particular entry.
Students will create a historical map of Europe during the Holocaust. The students will accomplish this task by conducting online research to identify the European countries that were occupied by the Germans and Axis Powers, the Allied Powers, and the neutral countries. The students will then color a map of Europe based on German-occupied countries, Allied Powers, and neutral countries during the Holocaust. The map will help students understand the political composition and the division of power of the European countries during the Holocaust. The map will also help students identify the geography of Europe during the Holocaust, including the locations of countries, and compare it to the current geography of Europe.
Scribble Maps (www.scribblemaps.com)
Scribble Maps provides many advantages over a pencil and paper map. Aside from just being able to color a map, students can add images and text to the map without having to worry about color contrast or clutter that can make it hard to identify things. Also, since Scribble Maps is powered with Google Maps, Scribble Maps provides many of the same advantages that Google Maps provides that paper and pencil cannot. For example, Scribble Maps allows panning to view the whole Earth, pinning locations, and zooming to street view so people can learn about a particular location.
Students will create graphs to represent the Jewish population in Europe during the Holocaust. Students will create bar graphs, a line graph, and circle graphs so they can see the data represented in various formats and get a feel for how numbers can be represented in various ways and produce different effects. The creation of multiple data displays will help students truly comprehend the devastation that occurred during the Holocaust. Moreover, the various data displays will help the students visualize the impact of the Holocaust on the Jewish people and the Jewish population.
The main advantages Chartgo provides over traditional paper and pencil are efficiency and accuracy. When using Chartgo, there is no need to use measurement or drawing tools, there is no need for shading, and there is no need for making scales that are often inaccurate because of unequal spacing. When graphing with Chartgo, it is only necessary to choose the graph type, to input title information, and to input the data. After these tasks are done, Chartgo does the rest of the work. The graphs are then output with precision and it is easy to read the graphs and make accurate conclusions, unlike with graphs that are done by hand that have inaccuracies like the scales.
Students will create an alternative book cover for Number the Stars. After reading the book, the students will develop an image that represents the content of the book by using pictures, drawings, and/or text. Students will be able to demonstrate their levels of comprehension of the book in the image. Furthermore, the students will have to determine the key characters, symbols, and events in the story. Then, the students will have to express their comprehension of these aspects of the book and create one image that best represents them. Finally, this activity will allow the students to express their comprehension of the book visually, rather than just verbally.
Sumopaint (www.sumopaint.com)
Sumopaint provides multiple advantages over drawing or painting with paper and pencil because Sumopaint is much more dynamic than paper and pencil. First, Sumopaint provides many more color options than typically available with paint, crayon, or colored pencil. Second, Sumopaint provides a variety of coloring utensils, such as crayons, paintbrushes, and preset shapes. This can make it much easier to create a look that is desired using Sumopaint rather than drawing traditionally on paper. Third, Sumopaint allows one to import pictures onto the canvas so that an image can be created around an editable picture or multiple pictures can be used to make a collage. Finally, layers can easily be made using Sumopaint, which is difficult to do on paper. Furthermore, Sumopaint can be used to make backgrounds and foregrounds to create a more realistic look than if done with drawing utensils on paper.
Students will create a final presentation to demonstrate their learning and experiences throughout the unit. The presentation will include the activities encountered throughout the unit, including the timelines, map, graphs, and book cover. The presentation will include a summary of Number the Stars. The presentation will give the students an opportunity to display and explain their growth and understanding that developed throughout the unit.
Google Presentations provides a number of advantages over creating presentations with paper and pencil. First, presentations made with Google Presentations can be displayed for or shared with audiences, small and large. Second, dynamic presentations that utilize color schemes, images, and multimedia that are not possible with paper and pencil can be created using Google Presentations. Finally, Google Presentations allows users to create and edit presentations collaboratively, which is not realistic with paper and pencil, especially from a distance. For example, with Google Presentations, users can be working on the same slide together simultaneously from different locations.
Students will correspond with a partner student from a classroom in Israel. The students will use this experience to learn more about the Jewish culture. The students will be given a set of items or questions they will have to get answered in their correspondences. The students will inquire about these items or questions and participate in conversations with their partners. They will then report to the class what they have learned about the Jewish culture from their partners.
ePals (www.epals.com)
I did not create an account for ePals because I do not have an individual school or students. However, I have attached pictures of how it is used.
ePals provides a number of advantages over traditional methods of finding people to communicate with and then communicating with them. First, ePals provides a searchable database with customized options. This makes it easy to find classes to communicate with based on particular characteristics. Second, since ePals utilizes electronic communications, communications can be nearly instant since days do not have to go by for mail to be delivered. Furthermore, the nearly instant communications feature of ePals allows students to conduct natural, real-time conversations. Finally, since communications on ePals are done on the computer, it is easy to communicate with classes that have different native languages. Students can simply copy the text that is in a foreign language and paste it in a translator (e.g., Google Translate) so that they can read it in their own language.
Students will create a blog and write a blog. The students will be assigned particular roles each day (i.e., Jewish child, German Civilian, German soldier). The students will then write their opinions about particular topics according to their understanding of the perspective of their assigned roles. Then, the students will be able to respond to posts of students with different perspectives and roles.
Edublogs (www.edublogs.org)
Edublogs provides a couple of advantages over writing opinions with paper and pencil. First, Edublogs makes it easy to share written opinions with others in a safe environment. Students can post their blogs for others to see and teachers can control who has access to the classroom blogs. Second, Edublogs provides a forum for students to post blogs, reply, and respond. This atmosphere provides an opportunity for productive conversation throughout the classroom, which is difficult with paper and pencil because it is difficult for each member of the class to view each written paper.
Students will write a newspaper article. After reading the section of Number the Stars where the German officers invade the Johansen home, the students will report an article based on what happened in the Johansen home. Students will account for the actions and dialog of the German soldiers and the Johansen family that appears in the book. Also, students will elaborate on the actions and dialog in the story by adding what they expect all parties would say (during and after the event) based on their knowledge of the situation and times.
Fodey.com (www.fodey.com)
Fodey.com is simple to use, as it is like a basic word processor. Users only need to fill out a few fields, including name of the newspaper, date, headline, and the story. Although Fodey.com is a very simple application, it is better than paper and pencil because it puts the input text in an image of a real newspaper. Therefore, students can gain a sense of pride and accomplishment when writing articles using this application because they get a concrete product in the form of what looks like a real, published newspaper.
I have created the following unit plan for reading Number the Stars. I created the complete unit plan in Google Docs and have embedded it below. The unit plan includes a description and rationale of the unit, goals, objectives, lesson activities, extension activities, and assessment. The unit plan is adapted from a unit plan created by Sandra Schwader and Mary Skoglund, which I have also attached a link to below. Also below, I have included the descriptions of all the Web 2.0 tools used in the unit. The last three Web 2.0 tools (ePals, Edublogs, and Fodey.com) are highlighted because they are optional tools for a more in-depth approach to the unit.
Adapted Unit Plan (Shaun Rosell)
Number the Stars Unit Plan
Original Unit Plan (Sandra Schwader and Mary Skoglund)
Number the Stars Unit Plan
graph
Graph maker
Create a graph
(www.epals.com)
(www.edublogs.org)
(www.fodey.com)